Rachel to face TV's Dragons

A Shropshire businesswoman is to tough it out in the Dragons' Den after she was invited to bid for cash backing for her new firm on the hit TV show.

Rachel Montgomery, from Oswestry, was inspired by a visit to Coventry Cathedral to set up a company that designs and makes contemporary art glass panels for windows and doors for homes and businesses.

Now she has been asked to appear in front of the Dragons themselves.

The cathedral's beautiful stained glass windows gave Rachel the idea and she has paid tribute to the support she has had to make her new venture a reality.

The business has been nurtured by The Opening Doors project, run by Women in Rural Enterprise (WiRE).

Now the people running this programme have been praised by Trevor Phillips, chairman of the Equality and Human Rights Commission.

Rachel's company artglas4architecture (visit www.artglass4architecture.co.uk) specialises in designing and producing glass panels, which use two layers of glass with a 1cm gap between them. The glass is treated to create a fabulous diffusion of light.

"When you go to a WiRE event, you get support and encouragement," said Rachel.

"No one is ever patronising or looking down on you. Starting a business is like learning Russian - you can't rush it - and WiRE helps you break the process into manageable, bite size pieces.

"I'm delighted to have been approached by Dragons' Den and am hoping to appear on the programme early next year."

Rachel has also been praised for helping to demonstrate the sheer diversity of British talent during the European Year of Equal Opportunities for All.

Mr Phillips said: "Projects like this - and many others in the West Midlands - are bringing communities together and tackling issues faced by some of the people encountering the greatest inequalities.

"But it's also important to recognise that The European Year of Equal Opportunities for All gives each and every one of us all a chance to consider what we mean when we talk about equality."

By Tracey O'Sullivan